There’s an Early Bird rate for both of these events, so keep that in mind before you decide to hold off. Dean and I are really excited for this and hope to see you there!
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Nifty adductor drill.
Had a toolbag on IG say “funny ppl hate the adductor machine but do this all day.”
1. I don’t hate it.
2. Adductor machine = $1000. This drill “cost” $50 (plus I can perform hundreds of other exercises).
3. I win. pic.twitter.com/zzlkzLgBZR
This place was a bit dearth with content this past week, but for good reason.
I signed a lease for a new, larger space for my gym here in Boston.
70% of me is excited while the other 30% is doing the best I can not to destroy the back of my pants. Nonetheless, coming in early 2020: The CORE Collective.
There’s an Early Bird rate for both of these events, so keep that in mind before you decide to hold off. Dean and I are really excited for this and hope to see you there!
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Personal trainers who complain about “working on the weekends” got into the wrong profession.
This is an older article from Mark (and one I read off of The Strength House’s newsletter), but man it needs to be read by ANYONE who manages people or owns a business.
But for real….a little exercise, daily, works wonders. There’s little need for marathon sessions in the gym, everyone’s busy and doesn’t have time, but Lana showcases some “quickie” workouts to set the tone.
Melbourne, Australia: July 19-21st and Melbourne Strength & Conditioning. (<— Includes bonus “Psych Skills for Fitness Pros” pre-workshop with Dr. Lisa Lewis).
This will be the only time Dr. Lisa Lewis and I will be presenting this workshop together in 2019. In previous years we’ve presented it in Boston, London, Toronto, Bonn (Germany), and Austin, TX.
This 1-day workshop is targeted towards fitness professionals and digs a little deeper into what really “bogs” them down and stresses them out….
…their clients!
ClickTHIS link for more details on topics covered as well as date/cost/location.
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After ensuring you’re ACTUALLY in a caloric deficit, consistent, adequate amounts of sleep = (likely) the best “nudger” of fat loss there is.
Before you reach for that detox tea that will set your anus on fire, consider going to bed instead?
In this episode, Dr. Lewis and host Kim Schlag discuss spotting, stopping, and reframing negative thinking, along with a potpourri of other psychological topics.
Great listen for fitness pros and fitness enthusiasts alike.
NOTE: If you prefer not to listen to this episode on iTunes you can go HERE.
I’ll be making my first appearance – ever (<— how’s that possible?) – in the wonderful state of North Carolina this coming March to put on my popular Coaching Competency Workshop.
Full details (date, location, itinerary, how to register) can be found HERE.
EARLY BIRD rate is currently in effect ($50 off regular price), so make sure to take advantage of it while you can.
3. I Was Memed
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Sport specific, schmort schmerlific
The better term is PERSON SPECIFIC training. Athletes don’t need to emulate their sport in the weight room. They need to use the weight room to address THEIR unique injury history, THEIR goals, and THEIR ability level. Just like everyone else.
Not many people know this but I almost dodged out of my first public speaking event. It was back in 2009 and I was slated to speak at a local college here in Boston to a bunch of incoming freshman on “better nutritional choices in the cafeteria.”
I woke up at like 3 am that morning terrified, telling my girlfriend (now wife) that I was thinking about calling in sick.
Can you even do that?
Anyway, she talked me out of it and no one died.
Since then I have spoken well over 50+ times all over the world and I’m 100% convinced that it’s helped me grow my business.
Mark Fisher is THE best public speaker I know and you should read this.
It’s September 1st and, right on cue, it’s a bit cold this morning in New England. I’m wearing sweatpants as I type this and am half temped to go grab a skullie (hat) out of the closet.
Alright, I don’t want to be one of those people that moans and groans about the weather on a blog. That’s the worst. Enjoy your Labor Day weekend everyone. See you next week.
There’s only a fewweeks left to take advantage of the Early Bird rate for Dean Somerset and I’s workshop in Orlando, at Spark Fitness, the weekend of October 21st.
HEADS UP: We’ve also added Boston into the mix later this year. Not Burlington Boston or Beverly Boston, two cities that are lovely, albeit not (that) close to Boston.
No, this is IN Boston. In the heart of the city Boston, at AMP Fitness.
Early bird rate is in effect now and if you’re super eager to sign-up you can go HERE.
2) Elite Fitness & Performance Summit – Chicago
I’ll be in Chicago this September alongside some other phenomenal speakers for the Elite Fitness & Performance Summit. The cast includes:
Nick Tumminello
Mark Fisher (if I have to follow him on stage I’m going to be pissed)
Josh Henkin
Nick Berry
Molly Galbraith
Krista Scott-Dixon
Ryan Ketchum
And many, many more. It’s one of the most action-packed fitness events of the year, so be sure to reserve your seat ASAP. You can go HERE to do so.
4) Workout With the Pedestal Footwear Guys
Last week both guys from Pedestal Footwear – Mike and Brendan (Mike actually trains with me every week) – made a cameo a CORE to film some videos for their site. I also took them through a pretty sick full-body workout. You can check it out HERE.
5) I’m, Like, Everywhere
HERE’s an article I contributed to over at STACK on core training for athletes.
And there’s THIS doozy where 5 coaches (myself included) were asked what their favorite Landmine exercises were.
HERE’s a cool article over on MensHealth.com I was quoted in on how a man lost 213 lbs without stepping foot in a gym. I know many people will get caught up on the the number and modality, however the LARGER take-home point is his unrelenting CONSISTENCY.
And lastly, here’s a recent video interview I recorded with Adam Rees from GRIT Gym.
“Nutrition is often seen as a belief system. In other words, the answer to “What should I eat?” is often based on faith, magical thinking, emotional attachments, and/or what feels “truthy”, rather than on real evidence or the scientific method. Until we fix this, nutrition will get more confusing, not less.”
I hung out with two of them this past weekend. Except, these weren’t unicorns in the fantastical sense, you know, with horns sticking out of their foreheads and the proclivity to shoot rainbows out of their ass.
In fact, these unicorns didn’t even have four legs. Or a tail.2
No, these “unicorns” were none other than my good friends Mark Fisher and Michael Keeler of Mark Fisher Fitness, co-founders of one of the most successful gyms in NYC (or the world for that matter). A place where members are referred to as ninjas, the gym itself is referred to as The Ninja Clubhouse of of Glory and Dreams, and well, lets just say it’s not uncommon territory for spontaneous ABBA dance-offs to take place in between sets of KB swings.
Actually, it’s par for the course on a Wednesday night.
Their moniker is Serious Fitness For Ridiculous Humans. Oftentimes people see the glitterly website and think: “Huh, that’s odd/interesting/WTF, did I just see a pic of a trainer wearing buttless pants? I guess it’s a cool place/I think I need to go wash my eyes.”
And it is. It’s an amazing place. I’d make the case there’s no gym in the world that does what MFF does. It’s impossible to walk within their walls and not feel good about yourself. The incessant positive reinforcement and insatiable desire to make people happy (and to accept their unique weirdness) is impressive.
What gets lost in translation (and amongst the buttless pants) is that their staff are some of the best at what they do. Sure, they have fun (like, a lot of fun)…but they’ll also casually discuss PRI, Pavel, Strong First, RKC, Smolov squat cycles, neck alignment, McGill vs. Contreras/Schoenfeld, and the pros and cons of OLY lifting.
Further, this was the end of an email I received from Mark a few years ago when he and I were going back and forth on a job opening MFF had and what they look for in a possible hire:
“Don’t get me wrong, if they’re a drag queen, that’s HUGELY helpful, but they need to be a drag queen who knows who Ed Coan is.”
To say Mark and Michael have built a successful (fitness) business – a very unique and unconventional one at that – would be an understatement. They are the MASTERS at building community and hiring the right people who are the right fit. And, they’re also the masters at being anal as balls at implementing systems and having a spreadsheet and purpose for everything pertaining to MFF and their business.
They were in Boston this past weekend and I had the opportunity to attend Day #2 of their Inside the Unicorn business workshop. Below are some takeaways (written in list/bullet format because I know I’m going to be all over the place).
1) We’re programmed by the industry to not offer free shit, and I’ll admit I’m hot and cold on this topic. To get people into your “funnel,” however, why not host a free outdoor class and then offer some sort of one-time offer or flash sale to lure people in? $50 off one-time assessment, or some sort of reduced price-point on a initial package.
2) To that point, you can then add people to your mailing list and then, in Keeler’s words, “hunt them like an animal for 30-days to purchase or to sign-up for a service you offer.” After 30 days, pump the brakes. Keep them on your list, but stop hunting.
Some people may take a few months (if not years) before they’re ready to commit to anything. Staying on their radar – in a non-pushy, non-urgent way – is important.
Interestingly, Keeler noted how NO-ONE picks up their phones, but that leaving occasional voice messages is still relevant. They can still listen to your voice, which “humanizes” the interaction.
3) At MFF they’re huge advocates of yearly (staff) reviews. Coincidentally, they’ve found that staff members are often harder and score themselves much harsher than management. To that end, their go to source on this front is the Gallup Q12 Employee Engagement Survey.
Keeler readily admits that the questions are open-ended, abstract, and “wishy washy,” but the research on their effectiveness backs up the results.
4) Speaking of evaluations, on a more personal facility to facility level, both Mark and Michael implored the attendees to come up with their own evaluation questions based off THEIR core values.
For example, for me, some of the questions I came up with were:
“How do you demonstrate integrity?”
“Do you feel you’re in an environment where your needs are met and that you’re able to grow as an individual and professional?”
“A Tribe Called Quest is the greatest rap group of all time, right? RIGHT?”
5) In addition, during the evaluation process it’s important to hit on different categories (and to make them relevant to YOUR facility). Here are some things to consider and my questions:
Skill-Based Competence – “I feel comfortable coaching the big 3 – squat, bench press, deadlift?” Maybe you’re a KB-based facility, so a more appropriate question here is your employee’s ability to coach a swing or get-up.
Communication Expectations – “I am able to regress/progress exercises based off client’s ability level, injury history, and goals?“
Unique to Culture – “I can articulate complex concepts – PRI, joint position, etc – simply?” If you work at a place like MFF, maybe a good question here would be “I’m okay with being silly.” or “I feel comfortable coaching a squat with a dildo glued to the squat rack.” Make these questions unique to YOUR gym culture.
Open-Ended Questions – “What can CORE do better to help you succeed?“
NOTE: note the use of “I.” This makes the evaluation more personal and more apt for people to honest.
6) Piggy backing off of #5, Michael and Mark encouraged everyone to omit the abstractness of using a numbered only ranking system (1-5), and to add words. Have fun with it. Here’s what I did:
“I feel comfortable coaching the big 3 – squat, bench press, deadlift?“
1 = I suck balls.
2 = Eh, I guess I’m okay.
3 = I’m Yoda with that shit.
SIDE NOTE: I think more numbers would be best. Say, 5, to give people a more diverse system to rank themselves. I used 3 for simplicity. Too, I almost feel as if it would be beneficial to add a “0” the ranking system. As in:
0 = I’d rather throw my face into a brick wall. I hate it.
This way you can better match services and skill-sets to the strengths of your employees. I don’t know, something to think about.
7) MFF take their team meetings VERY seriously. For starters it’s paid time for everyone to attend, and their meetings run 2-3 hours every week.
Have an agenda. In MFF’s case they’re expensive, make them count.
Time each activity. As in, 5 Minutes for general intro, 10 Minutes of announcements (upcoming workshops, new class offering, etc), 20 Minutes on coaching cues, 10 Minutes on interpretive dance, so on and so forth.
Plan long-term. MFF plans their meetings months in advance. That way they’re not spending an inordinate amount of time per meeting on any one topic. If program design needs to be covered, they may allot 30-60 minutes for four straight meetings down the road so they know they have digestible chunks.
They’ve set the expectation that everyone needs to attend, and they’ve more or less made them important and informative enough that staff would attend them even if they weren’t getting paid for them.
Hold staff meetings in the middle of the week – Wednesday/Thur – so you have less likelihood of people missing due to extended weekends or Holidays.
8) And finally, one of Mark’s greatest pet-peeves is lack of communication amongst staff, to the point where people talk shit and air their grievances with other staff members or management except for the person they really should be speaking to. Just, stop it.
I had the amazing opportunity of being invited down to NYC this past weekend to speak at the first Motivation & Movement Lab hosted by Mark Fisher Fitness.
The picture above was a group photo I happened to snake myself into during their POP (Pants Optional Party)3 on Saturday night.
A night, mind you, that saw me stay up till 3:30AM, which never happens. I wasn’t even fighting crime. I was just having a good time.
Can you spot me?
[And yes, there were plenty of people with no pants on during the party. FYI: Mine were on. I think.]
I’ve been friends with Mark (and many of his staff) for years now, but this was my first time visiting his facility in the flesh. And there was a lot of flesh.
Need a little perspective?
Here’s me finishing my last set of squats with MFF coaches Brian Patrick Murphy, Matt Wilson, and Liz Messina (along with special guest appearance by Roger Lawson, or RogLaw for those in the know) in the background performing bicep curls in their underwear.
With the red lights on and “No Easy Way Out” (<—Rocky IV shout out!) blaring in the background. All par for the course at MFF.
#seriousfitness
The video above was shared on Facebook yesterday and my mom (of all people) shared it on her Facebook page. I guess I’ll gave some explaining to do at this year’s Thanksgiving dinner.
Needless to say I had a blast this past weekend. The Motivate and Movement Lab, held on Saturday and featuring myself, Mark Fisher, Harold Gibbons, and Kyle Young – speaking on everything from gym culture and the power of social media to building a better coaching rapport with your clients and female marketing in the mainstream media – was baller.
I believe close t0 75 personal trainers and coaches showed up (pants on for this one) and were treated to a less conventional, albeit welcomed and fresh approach compared to other seminars and workshops.
Each speaker provided a 30 minute “introductory presentation” on their topic which was then followed by a 45 minute “lab” where the information was dissected in a more hand-on or participatory fashion.
I can’t say for sure, but it was pretty much the best day of everyone’s life. Ever.
All in all, the weekend was a testament to Mark and the culture that he and his staff have been able to germinate and grow to cult-like – albeit inspiring – proportions.
Warning: video below is NSFW, so put on your headphones.
And on that note, lets get to this week’s list of Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work.
I can’t tell you how many times Pete Dupuis, Cressey Sports Performance’s Vice President and Business Director, has consulted with current and prospective gym owners who have seemingly fallen prey to a handful of seemingly OBVIOUS mistakes.
1. Having eyes bigger than their bank account(s) and opening up a 10,000 sq. foot facility out of the gate.
Start small and build. Always.
2. Not knowing their numbers inside and out. One of Pete’s litmus tests is to ask someone what’s the minimum amount they need to collect on any given month to cover their overhead (payroll, rent, health insurance, electric bill, etc).
It’s mind-boggling how many don’t even know that.
Some don’t even know what they collected that month.
Nevertheless, I felt this article helped shed some light on many other factors that are often overlooked.
Many articles written about squats are written by geared lifters. This isn’t a knock against geared lifters – they have a lot to offer – but many of the cues and techniques that work for them won’t translate to raw lifters.
“Isn’t he that dude who owns a gym in NYC, who’s obsessed with, like, rainbows and unicorns and stuff?”
That was the question EC asked me a few summers ago when I had mentioned in passing that this guy named Mark Fisher was coming to CSP (along with his head trainer, Kyle Langworthy) for mine and Dean Somerset’s Excellent Workshop up in Boston.
At the time I had no idea who Mark Fisher or Mark Fisher Fitness was other than Eric’s comment.
Rainbows?
Unicorns?
What the what!?!?!? “Who is this guy?” I thought to myself. And, “what’s he all about?”
To be honest, at the time I didn’t care. He paid the registration fee, and giving credit where it’s due, no one is going to pay that much money and make the trek from NYC to Boston for a 2-day workshop who doesn’t give a shit and doesn’t want to learn. At the end of the day, that’s cool in my book.
Long story short: it was an awesome weekend. Mark (and Kyle) attended, and Mark was gracious enough to participate in a “Expert Panel” at the end of the weekend (which also featured Ben Bruno and Jim “Smitty” Smith of Diesel Strength fame) discussing business stuff and how important it is to build a sense of “community” amongst your gym members (or as he refers to them, ninjas) for long-term success.
Since then Mark (and many of his staff members) have grown to be good friends of mine. We’ve crossed paths numerous times attending various seminars and social gatherings, and have kept in touch via email. I remember not long ago Mark reached out asking if CSP had any current or past interns who’d be interested in employment at MFF and to ask if any would be a good fit (because lets be honest: it takes a certain individual to be comfortable enough to teach a group of people how to perform a kettlebell swing or proper hip hinge while simultaneously lip syncing to ABBA and trying not to make eye contact with occasional dildo hanging on the wall).
It’s an eclectic, unique, and fun atmosphere to say the least. But that shouldn’t deter people from thinking MFF is all glitter paint and party boas. It’s not.
In fact, when Mark and I were going back and forth on interns and employment he shot back this classic quote which I’ll never forget:
“Don’t get me wrong, if they’re a drag queen, that’s HUGELY helpful, but they need to be a drag queen who knows who Ed Coan is.”
Suffice it say I’m a huge fan. Mark and his staff are superb and it’s no surprise they’ve established themselves as one of the destination gyms to train at in a city that’s saturated with an infinite selection to choose from.
Stepping aside from the fitness side of things for a second, another reason why I admire Mark and the culture he’s constructed is that, as much as he’s a geek at improving someone’s scapular upward rotation or squat technique, he’s equally a champion at understanding that there’s a lot to life OUTSIDE of the gym.
Which was why I was more than excited to be invited onto the MFF Best Life Radio Podcast hosted by Mark Fisher Fitness co-founder, Brian Patrick Murphy.
Much like Mark, Brian exudes positive attitude. It’s very hard not to be talking with Brian and not feel his exuberance and zest for what life has to offer marinate into your own consciousness. It’s infectious and I dig it so much.
We chatted the other morning for a little more than an hour on everything from my career to being newly engaged to our affinity on walking around with our pants off. It was a really fun interview to do. So if you have some time to kill commuting to work, or if you’re at work and want to drown out your annoying cubicle mate give it a listen. I think you’ll enjoy it.
UPDATE: to say I’m ass, and realized after having landed and met my ride that I was in NORTH DAKOTA and not Minnesota.
It’s my first extended stay in the state of Minnesota North Dakota, and sadly I have no beard to show for it.
Nevertheless, I was pumped to be invited to speak at this event and am looking forward to a weekend of learning and networking (and trying my best not to make any references to Fargo, the movie).
You’re darn tootin’!
Sorry, I couldn’t resist.
Here’s this week’s list of stuff to read while you’re pretending to work.
People love arguing over the merits of breakfast. I for one LOVE breakfast. I wake up every morning excited to crush an omelet. And I’m not talking about some sissy egg white omelet either. No, no. I’m talking about a 6-8 WHOLE egg omelet.
Breakfast isn’t for everyone, though, and it’s not the end of the world if someone decides to skip it. Despite some sensationalistic reports, skipping it WILL NOT make you fat. The team over at Precision Nutrition explains why.
The Positive Business Plan – Mark Fisher and Michael Keeler
This isn’t something to read, but rather watch. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in helping to start and run a successful (fitness) business it’s that caffeine is your best friend going out of your way to build a sense of COMMUNITY amongst your members is worth more than gold.
You’d be hard pressed find anyone who’s done a better job at doing this than Mark Fisher and his business partner, Michael Keeler.
I mean, they refer to their clients as Ninjas! And they don’t call their gym a gym. Instead, they refer to it as The Enchanted Ninja Clubhouse of Glory and Dreams.
But it’s not all unicorns and nunchucks.
Mark estimates that each coach at his establishment spends roughly 10-hours per week on personal development.
Ie: their “Ninjas” get coached very, very well. They not only know every word to the musical Wicked, but they know who Mel Siff is.
I’ve personally met Mark, and I respect the hell out of him. And I HIGHLY encourage anyone who’s remotely interested in starting a business (any business) to watch this 16 minute video.
